This post revisits arguments related to free will and complexity theory. I've recently been focused on newer arguments for self-determinism (a compatibilist explanation of free will) but an interview of Daniel Dennett, by CFI, has prompted me to revisit "emergent properties". If you're not familiar with my explanation for self-determinism, please consult my web page at AtheistExile.com for several posts on the topic.

The brother-in-law doesn’t think I should go to church with my wife. He thinks it’s the height of hypocrisy for me to even set foot in a church, Christian or otherwise. When I confronted him with the statistics that say, just within his own 2000+ member church, there could be anywhere from thirty to three hundred and twenty non-believers, he maintained his denial. There are no atheists in his…

Homosexuals have faced a much more violent and oppressive opposition in this country than atheists have, so don't think I'm conflating the struggles of the LGBT community with that of atheists. But there is one specific similarity that the LGBT community is in fact more advanced in dealing with:… Continue